Blackbird
Origin 'Childhood' Blackbird was born August 25, 1988, in the town of Av Himlen on the planet Aetius. He is the son of two well-respected superheroes: Fireball (father) and Mistress (mother). While his real name was never known or disclosed until he was much older (only his parents knew his name, naturally), he goes by the name of “Tiny,” coined by a family friend at the time of his birth. Reason for the nickname is simple: being the smallest baby in the infirmary, the name was a natural fit. He quickly grew into his body, however, and as an adult now, his body size is similar to that of other adults on his home planet. Aetius is home to a race of bird-like meta-humans. Aetius has been colonized for thousands of years, with early colonists looking more human than the current generation of Aetians do, who look more bird-like. The first birdman was the result of the consummation of a woman and the bird god Avalerion. Since then, each successive generation has been less and less human (in terms of overall genetic makeup), though no one will ever be less than 20% human. Blackbird's genetic makeup is 70/30 bird. At 3 years old, Tiny’s powers started to fully manifest. One day, while playing with some of his friends outside, fire flew from his hands and ended up burning one of his friends. Distraught at what had just occurred, Tiny quickly returned home to tell his parents what happened. Upon hearing the news, his parents realized that their son had something special. His father, therefore, decided that this power should be controlled and also used responsibly. It didn’t take long for Tiny to learn how to control the fire; he was young enough where it was relatively easy to do so. Had he been a little older, this could’ve become unstable and would’ve therefore been harder to control, if not impossible. After learning to control the fire, his father bestowed him with one very important piece of advice, which he has since lived by: “Power breeds responsibility. Use it correctly and it will never betray you.” Also among his unique powers are super strength (unaware of until the age of 12) and the ability of flight, the latter of which is possessed by his mother as well (Tiny started manifesting black wings at 2 years old, but couldn’t fly until he was 4.) He is also able to survive in space without oxygen. It is the result of a mutation that some inhabitants have acquired, though the mutation doesn't fully manifest itself until the individual hits adulthood. There is also a secondary effect to the mutation, though how it affects everyone (who has it) is completely different. For Tiny, his secondary effect has greatly increased his flight speed. He is able to travel 10 times the speed of light while in space, but he’s maxed at Mach 2 (1522 mph) while he’s on any planet. After Tiny turned 4 years old, his wings began growing with his body a little more. Wanting to teach him how to fly, Mistress decided that the easiest way to do so was to take him to the roof of their house and train him there. It started out with Mistress throwing him only a few feet into the air in hopes that he would flap his wings and hover there for a second or two. It took some getting used to, but eventually, Tiny started hovering for longer periods of time. Mistress, then, started flying around their property while holding Tiny. What she was hoping for was that he would start flapping his wings in rhythm with hers and gain a feel for what it’s like to fly. He did just that and eventually, was released from his mother’s arms and, not knowing what to do, panicked. He started frantically flapping as hard as he could, hoping maybe he could stop his momentum and hover long enough for his mom to retake him in her arms. Seeing her son struggle to stay in the air, Mistress quickly swooped down and grabbed him. She then continued with her drill until Tiny’s fear subsided. It didn’t take long for it to go away because he soon realized that nothing bad would happen to him as long as his mother was around. It was after this realization that he started flying around without assistance. As he got older, he developed advanced flying techniques, dive-bombing being just one of many. 'War and Escape' Three years later, at age 7, Fireball took Tiny to see the martial arts master Menthu. Menthu was given the responsibility of training Tiny. Through training, Fireball hoped that one day his son would become a great superhero much like him and his wife. At the very least, Tiny was to learn self-discipline. Four months into training, civil war erupted in Av Himlen. A resistance group, who called themselves “The Crew,” rose up trying to overthrow the government. Many well-respected heroes, including Fireball and Mistress, joined forces with the government’s military to try to crush the insurgency. Seven months into the war, in the midst of a very heavy night battle, Fireball and Mistress both died. Word spread through the town very quickly and when it reached Menthu, he was forced to take himself and Tiny and flee the planet as he felt that it was no longer safe. They took an escape pod from a nearby science facility and made haste for Earth. 'Training' Soon thereafter, the escape pod landed on Earth about a mile outside of Gotham City. Upon reaching Gotham, Menthu and Tiny decided to settle in the dark, desolate city, as it was the closest civilization to them and they were unfamiliar with their new surroundings. Training continued on the outskirts of Gotham for 3 years, until Tiny was 10 years old. Upon turning 10, Menthu, seeing just how much progress Tiny had made in such a short time, decided it was time to train him in weapons. One day, during a routine training session, Menthu brought out Fireball’s old Bo Staff (which Menthu acquired from the messenger that gave the news that Fireball had died) and gave it to Tiny to have. After handing the staff to Tiny, Menthu had something very important to tell him: the person who killed his parents is someone by the name of Carla Aderyn, aka “Shadow Sniper.” He explained to Tiny that during the war, she was solely responsible for killing them. If she didn’t want to become the ruler of Av Himlen, the war never would have happened, his parents would still be alive and they wouldn’t have had to flee to Earth. Tiny quickly recognized that this staff was that of his dad’s, and gladly took it. He vowed to use it with honor and follow in his parents’ footsteps and fight evil. He also wanted to avenge his parents’ deaths and vowed to bring Carla to justice one day and restore order on his home planet. After 2 additional years of training with the staff, Tiny was finally proficient enough that Menthu stopped training and had one final test: defeating him in a duel. Knowing this may be one of the few chances he has to prove himself, Tiny accepted the challenge. The duel was intense. Both fighters traded blow after blow with neither giving up the advantage. It wasn’t until Menthu tried his signature move, something he called the "reverse flashkick," that Tiny finally gained the upper hand. With the flashkick ready to connect, Tiny caught Menthu’s leg in midair and with one fell swoop, flung him to the ground. Menthu was sent through the ground about 10 feet, creating a hole about 4 feet across where his body connected with the ground. Tiny had no idea that he had that much power, but this display of power felt good to him. It was just one more thing at his disposal to use for fighting villains. Menthu quickly climbed out of the hole that was made in the ground; though it was clear he was visibly shaken up. Nevertheless, he was impressed by Tiny’s agility and strength, and decided to end the duel. The end of the duel also signaled the end of Tiny’s training, at which time Tiny was allowed to go out on his own when he felt like it. Menthu knew that Tiny was responsible enough, even at 12 years old, to do what was right and avoid trouble. Present Day 'The Vanguardians' When Blackbird was 21, he started becoming more proactive in his heroing duties. One day, while in Metropolis on vacation, he witnessed an event that would eventually lead to joining up with a group of like-minded heroes. As he was sitting on a bench in Centennial Park, taking in the sun that was beating down on the ground on a warm spring day, he was soon attacked by a woman. After a brief tussle with her, he was able to fight her off and immediately took to the sky to survey the surroundings. What he saw surprised him; everyone had seemingly lost control of their own bodies and were running around attacking one another. He took off and began scouting the city, trying to locate the source of the disturbance. As he was flying, he saw a flash of light out of the corner of his left eye. Following the direction of the light, he was led to the coast. There, he met a fellow hero named Silence. After being told what was going on, Blackbird saw some smoke off in the distance, in the direction of Stryker's Penetentiary. Blackbird and Silence took off towards the prison. Landing on the edge of the prison, they are met by another hero, a woman who appeared to be half-human/half-lizard. She introduced herself as Azurei. She asked what was going on and Blackbird filled her in on the madness in Metropolis. Blackbird and the others then began taking down rioting prisoners, trying to restore order and find the true source. There were other heroes present as well: Supreme Will, Manic Harbinger, Whirl-Wind, Breakneck, Eccentric Zoom, Psi, and Justice. Together, they all began taking down the prisoners, trying to restore order. After a while, Blackbird saw a villain by the name of Mind Droid standing over a bloodied and defeated Eccentric Zoom. After a brief battle, Blackbird was able to take Mind Droid down and took Eccentric Zoom to the roof of the prison to recover. Meanwhile, the other heroes had their hands full with the villain Parasite, who they eventually took down. After the exterior of the prison was cleared, Blackbird and the others made their way inside the prison to finish up. Justice, after being tipped off about Gorilla Grodd inside the prison as the main source, was able to take Grodd down relatively easily. Blackbird and Whirl-Wind found an unconscious Silence inside one of the prison cells and helped him to his feet, where shortly beforehand Silence had taken down a man by the name of The Warden with a major psychic blast. Once they were finished in the prison, all of the heroes exited where the Justice League were waiting. Supreme Will explained to Wonder Woman that they were the ones who had quelled the uprising, to which Wonder Woman commended them on a job well done. 'Return to Av Himlen' Having established a life on Earth, Blackbird began searching for a way to get home; he wanted to avenge his parents death by taking down Shadow Sniper. One day, while in his secret lair The Birdcage, he began looking through a number of databases and searching for both his home planet and a means to get there. He ended up finding his home planet of Aetius located 20 light years away from Earth, and also a science facility to get him home. He ends up heading to the NASA Science Center in Florida. It is there that NASA has a ship built that is able to get Blackbird home in 6 months, due to vast improvements in space travel. When he finally lands on the surface of Aetius, Blackbird steps out and surveys his surroundings. Nothing is like he remembers it when he was last there 15 years prior. After seeing the destruction that has been caused, he notices a giant temple in the distance, which he assumes must be the home of Shadow Sniper. He proceeds towards the temple steps, quickly dispatching of the guards that were at the base of the steps. He then makes his way to the top of the steps and heads inside the temple. Inside, he sees Shadow Sniper, high up on her throne. A giant battle ensues between the two, with Blackbird having the upper hand for the most part. He was stronger and quicker than Sniper was. He did stumble at one point, though. Sniper took advantage of his mishap by grabbing a sword and thrusting it towards his heart. Blackbird recovered just in time to see the sword about to pierce his chest and stopped Sniper's hand before the tip of the sword could reach his chest. Using his strength, he pushed her back and began an all-out assault in which Sniper couldn't recover. Having knocked her unconscious, Blackbird pulled out a sedative and injected it into Sniper's neck, knocking her fully unconscious. Blackbird knew that the sedative was only good for a couple hours, so he had to work quickly. Wanting to look for possible survivors, Blackbird made his way towards some steps in the back right corner that led down to the dungeon. When Blackbird reached the dungeon, he was met with resistance in the form of more guards. He quickly dispatched of them and then continued looking for anybody he could find. As soon as he reached the end of the hallway, he heard someone call out for help. He turned to find his childhood friend Cammy Vogel locked up with her hands shackled to the wall. He quickly broke through the door, rushed to her side, freed her hands and asked what had happened. She explained everything that had happened to her since he had left 15 years prior. She explained that she had been captured and tested on. After having 1000 volts of electricity surge through her body, it changed her molecular structure and she could now harness the power of electricity and lightning from her hands. She fought her way out of the temple and back into hiding. After crafting a new suit and guns that were powered by her lightning powers, she had struck back at Sniper as the hero "Jolt." Attempting to take on Sniper, Jolt explained that she was defeated, locked up and suffered brutal beatings once a month at the hands of both Sniper and one of her guards because Sniper thought that Jolt knew where Blackbird was, but she had no clue. Once Jolt was finished with her story, Blackbird carried her out of the dungeon and back to the main floor, where Sniper laid unconscious. Jolt regained her strength and was able to get herself to the ship while Blackbird carried Sniper, who was slung over his shoulder. Blackbird originally wanted to transport Shadow Sniper back to Earth, but at the urge of Jolt, and also knowing that Sniper would be conscious within a couple hours, decided against it. Instead, he created a makeshift prison out of a lot of giant rock columns. He places the columns about an inch apart and in a circular fashion. Once he finished, he placed Sniper at the bottom of the "prison." With Sniper locked away, Blackbird hoped that the people of Av Himlen can retake the city and turn it back into a democracy. He then turned and headed over to his ship so that him and Jolt could head back to Earth. Before reaching the ship, however, Blackbird got to thinking about the technology on the planet. He knew that his race was more technologically advanced than the people on Earth were, so he wanted to see if there were any improvements in the past 15 years. He came across an abandoned science facility. The inside looked like it hadn't even been touched because everything there looked to be in great condition. After looking around for half an hour, Jolt came looking for Blackbird wondering where he went. After finding him in the science center, she showed Blackbird how much improvement there has been in the past 15 years. She shows him a pair of teleporters and tells him to go stand on one, proving that they worked, with no ill side effects. After testing them out, Blackbird took one of them and tucked it away deep underground where no one would find it. He took the other teleporter with him so it could be placed in his lair on Earth, which would then provide quick, easy travel back to Aetius should he feel the need to do so. With teleporter in hand, Blackbird and Jolt finally begin to head back to the ship for their journey back to Earth. Inside the ship, Blackbird set the reverse course for Earth. After the ship took off and began its course back to Earth, him and Jolt went into the makeshift bedroom to enter another deep, coma-like sleep. He was at peace now that his parents' deaths were avenged, his nemesis was locked away (for what he hoped would be a fairly long time) and he was reunited with his childhood friend (now girlfriend) turned hero. 'Schooling' Between all of the training that he received, Tiny attended school in Gotham. He ended up graduating high school near the top of his class and went on to attend college at Gotham University. He remained under Menthu’s watch until he turned 18, at which time he got his own apartment, though he would frequently visit Menthu for advice until Menthu’s death a year later. In college, Tiny continued to excel. He graduated Gotham University in just 3 years with a structural engineering degree near the top of his class (just like high school.) While he was in college, Tiny began to design an underground base for himself. He took inspiration from Batman, who he would run into from time to time. The design was to be as technologically advanced as the Batcave, or as near to advanced as Tiny could allow, given his financial position. Once he graduated from college, he moved himself out of his apartment and into a house. Shortly after moving in, he began work on his private quarters. He has dubbed his lair “The Birdcage,” which was recently completed. It is there that he tracks the events that are happening throughout not only Gotham, but around the world as well, ready to spring into action should the need arise. Powers and Abilities 'Flight' His wings manifested when he was 2 years old and he could fly at 4 years old. He can travel 10 times the speed of light while in space and a max of Mach 2 (1522 mph) while on any planet, thanks to a mutation in his body that fully manifested once he hit adulthood. 'Super-Strength' Blackbird is able to send a normal human being more than a mile through the air. He's also able to lift/maintain objects weighing upwards of 20 tons with relative ease. He can push himself to a maximum of 25 tons if it's necessary to do so. 'Expert Martial Artist' Went through 5 years of training and had to win a duel just to complete training. Very adept at hand-to-hand and other forms of martial arts. Also very flexible so he's able to pull off moves that no normal human would ever think about trying. He's mastered 6 forms of martial arts thus far, and they are as follows: Aikido, Kung Fu, Muay Thai, Jujitsu, Capoeira and Taekwondo. He is constantly training in different martial arts disciplines and is continues to work towards mastering many forms of martial arts. 'Pyrokinesis' His mastery over fire, thanks to his father, allows him to conjure fire from his hands and make it into whatever he wants it to be (giant column, fist, etc.) He can also manipulate any flames that may be around him, thus allowing him to avoid harm from fire. Also, since he gained his fire powers through genetics, he never needs to recharge through the use of sunlight or any other kind of light in order to keep using his fire powers. However, direct sunlight will increase the power of his fire abilities, up to double the normal power, and when not in direct sunlight, he has a normal amount of power.